"Looks like Tapu Koko is almost done for."
The three other island guardians watching the battle, though disdainful of Tapu Koko's earlier underhanded tactics, couldn't ignore the fact that it was the last line of defense of their pride.
If it lost, that would mean all the guardian deities had been defeated by a single human—Julian, which would be rather embarrassing to admit.
Tapu Fini tilted its head slightly. "Have you noticed? That Metagross seems to be absorbing sunlight."
If one looked closely, they could see the sunlight around Mega Metagross slightly distorting, as if it was continuously being absorbed by it.
"Photosynthesis?!"
Tapu Bulu was momentarily stunned. As a Grass/Fairy-type, it knew that all Grass-type Pokémon shared a common trait: under sunlight, they could perform photosynthesis.
Photosynthesis helped recover stamina, heal injuries, restore energy, and greatly reducing their need for food.
Because of this trait, many civilian trainers chose Grass-types as their starters—though most eventually swapped them out for a type they truly liked once they grew stronger.
But Metagross was Steel/Psychic—it shouldn't be able to use photosynthesis at all!
Moreover, the way it was absorbing sunlight was even more impressive than what a legitimate Grass-type Pokémon like Tapu Bulu could do.
This revelation left Tapu Bulu feeling a bit dejected.
"I feel like I've seen this kind of ability somewhere before…"
Tapu Lele murmured, digging through its ancient memories, but unfortunately, it had lived too long and couldn't recall the details of events from so long ago. In the end, it simply gave up. "Eh, whatever."
---
On the other side, Pierce and the other three were grinning wildly as Mega Metagross's advantage grew.
"This is insane. Even a peak pseudo-Champion can't beat him," Ember muttered in awe.
Although Tapu Koko hadn't lost yet, as long as Mega Metagross didn't make a catastrophic mistake, the outcome of this battle was already determined.
"Give him a few years, and he might even take on a Champion," Asher said.
"Why stop there? Why not say he'll become a Champion himself in a few years?" Rowan scoffed.
"That's impossible," Asher shook his head firmly.
For a Pokémon to reach Champion-level, the first requirement was for it to have Purple-grade potential. Whether Metagross possessed Purple-grade potential was still unknown, but even if it did, becoming a Champion was extraordinarily difficult.
There were also some mysterious factors involved, though Asher wasn't quite sure what they were — he'd only heard his father mention them in passing.
---
Mega Metagross: "Tired, aren't you?"
Tapu Koko: "Not at all."
Mega Metagross: "If you're doing so 'well,' why are you panting so loud? I can hear your lungs wheezing from a hundred meters away."
Tapu Koko: (╬▔皿▔)
The teasing ended there.
Tapu Koko unleashed a surge of brilliant golden lightning from its body, but instead of attacking Mega Metagross, the lightning spread out like a net beneath them, forming a field that stretched for over a kilometer.
Electric Terrain!
This guy had set up Electric Terrain again, but this time it was right in front of Julian and Mega Metagross.
Within the Electric Terrain, Tapu Koko felt like it was invincible again.
Mega Metagross let out a cold snort, and a powerful surge of psychic energy erupted from its body in waves.
The Electric Terrain that Tapu Koko had just established began to tremble and disintegrate under the overwhelming psychic onslaught. Finally, with a faint pop, it shattered into countless tiny sparks and vanished.
The simplest way to break terrain moves was sheer brute force—provided, of course, that you had the strength to back it up.
The moment the Electric Terrain collapsed, Mega Metagross vanished from its original spot, and when it reappeared, it was right in front of Tapu Koko.
Hammer Arm!!
A powerful shockwave erupted from Mega Metagross's massive limb, the air in front of its fist compressing into something almost solid.
Tapu Koko's expression changed dramatically. Its shield-like arms slammed together, forming a desperate barrier to block the incoming Hammer Arm.
CRACK—!!
Hammer Arm's power surpassed even Meteor Mash, though using the move would lower Mega Metagross's speed.
The moment Hammer Arm collided with the shield formed by Tapu Koko's arms, Tapu Koko felt an overwhelming force surge through it.
With a sharp cracking sound, its shield was forcibly shattered by Hammer Arm, exposing its defenseless body.
BAM!!!
This time, Hammer Arm connected directly with Tapu Koko's face. The force catapulted it like a cannonball, sending it blasting across the island—
BOOM BOOM BOOM
Trees shattered. Rocks vaporized. The sheer air pressure locked Tapu Koko's body mid-flight, leaving it helpless as it plowed through half of Melemele Island.
Tapu Koko looked like a shooting star streaking across Melemele Island. Finally, it crashed into a mountain, embedding hundreds of meters deep into the stone.
Before it could even twitch—
A golden Hyper Beam shot from the cross-shaped crest on Mega Metagross's forehead. With its incredible computing power, it precisely aimed the beam at Tapu Koko's crash site, even from dozens of kilometers away.
BOOOOOOM!!!
The beam speared into the crater Tapu Koko had created, detonating with apocalyptic force.
CRUNCH—CRACK—BOOM!!
The mountain itself shuddered, fissures spiderwebbing outward as the peak collapsed inward.
As the Hyper Beam continued to pour its devastating energy into the mountain, deep fissures began to split the rock face apart. Trees atop the summit trembled violently before collapsing, while powerful shockwaves erupted from the widening cracks.
The entire 500-meter-tall mountain, now riddled with cracks, started to sway precariously—until...
BOOM!!!
Inside the collapsing peak, Tapu Koko—still relentlessly being pummeled by the Hyper Beam—was blasted straight through the mountain, erupting from the opposite side in a shower of debris.
As the Hyper Beam faded, Mega Metagross teleported instantly in front of its foe.
At this moment, Tapu Koko, barely able to stand, trembled with exhaustion—yet the fighting spirit in its eyes remained undiminished.
Then, with a final Bullet Punch, Mega Metagross sent Tapu Koko spiraling into unconsciousness.
---
Not long after, Julian arrived riding on Moltres, and what he saw was the already unconscious Tapu Koko.
With this, he had effectively cleared this Top-tier secret realm.
However, there were still two First-class Legendaries sleeping on the central island. Ever since learning of their existence, Julian had given up on the idea of heading there.
Moreover, to reach the central island, he would need to face a 1-vs-4 battle against the four guardian deities—something he simply didn't have the strength to achieve at the moment.
Tapu Lele: "That was brutal."
Tapu Bulu: "More brutal than when I nearly died?!"
Tapu Fini: "Why are you even comparing?"
Tapu Bulu: "We still haven't settled our score, you traitor—!"
And just like that, the two Guardians resumed their eternal game of chase.
Meanwhile, Julian released Mega Metagross from its evolved form. Metagross floated over, its usual stoicism softened by clear satisfaction.
"You did great," Julian said, patting Metagross on the head, while the latter showed a happy expression.
*****
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